The evolution of wireless Internet Protocol (IP) communications for mobile platforms, such as aircraft, buses, trains and ships, has introduced significant challenges. Although such communication provides a flexible, wide-band data interface, it raises computing security concerns. For example, aircraft have historically utilized airplane communications addressing/reporting system (ACARS) to communicate between aircraft and between aircraft and ground system. However, there typically has been little to no security associated with this communications method. Additionally, IP communication technology introduces the potential for unauthorized access to sensitive data stored on mobile platform systems, such as an electronic flight bag of an aircraft, and/or mobile platform provider central systems, such as a central system for an airline. Traditionally, for Internet protocol based systems, the problem of unauthorized use has been solved by the management of security certificates which are exchanged between “trusted users”. Generally, the “mobile” end of the “trusted environment” is a computer with an interactive user that can be involved in the acceptance of such security certificates. The update and exchange of such certificates was initially designed for dedicated computer users and involved periodic, specific interaction by a user at unplanned intervals.
However, in a mobile platform environment, the “mobile” end is often computer equipment or a computer system of the mobile platform. Crew of the mobile platform often have limited knowledge of computer security and workload requirements that make implementation of ‘standard’ security certificate systems operationally unfeasible. In many instances, the mobile platform computer equipment or components of the computer system can be exchanged or replaced. For example, some airlines utilize “spares pooling” which enables one airline to borrow computer equipment from another airline. Flight crews and maintenance crews make these exchanges during short turnaround times and are not typically authorized to implement an interactive exchange of security certificates between the newly installed computer equipment and the central computer system. Cryptographic hardware that could be used to automatically exchange security certificates between the newly installed computer equipment and the central computer would involve “parking” the mobile platform for extended periods and require considerable labor costs to install such hardware. Additionally, a dynamic, user interactive request for a mobile platform to accept a new certificate could come at a high workload time and rely on the knowledge of the user, which may be limited, thus, making such dynamic, interactive requests infeasible.
Therefore, it is desirable to implement an automated, secure, wireless certificate exchange solution that establishes secure link between a mobile platform computer system and a remote computer system to assure that only authorized users can access sensitive data stored on either system.